11 DECEMBER 1993, page 41

Recent First Novels

James Walton M ark Frost, American film director and co-creator of Twin Peaks, cannot be accused of playing it safe with his first novel. Set in 1884, it begins with Arthur......

The Taming Of The Shrewd

Mark Archer THE CIVILISATION OF EUROPE IN THE RENAISSANCE by John Hale HarperCollins, £25, pp. 648 A ny book whose title challenges com- parison with Burckhardt's The......

Change, Decay And Some Irritation

William Leith THE SPECTATOR ANNUAL edited by Dominic Lawson HarperCollins, £20, pp. 309 I t was the year when Brian Clough resigned; when Ian Hislop was asked to appear nude on......